Unlike our parents, majority of us have been blessed with mobility made possible by advanced  technological developments both in the transportation and tourism industries. The introduction of the Internet made all of us real global citizens.

Gathering information online on a specific destination is now so easy. Social media sites made it even easier to connect with others who have been to any of your place of interest in this beautiful world of ours. Better yet, unbiased ratings by folks from all over the world allow others to make informed decisions. These positive developments enabled the global community to feel more comfortable traveling to places they would not have dreamt or felt comfortable setting foot in otherwise.

I’m sure I’m not the only one with friends, relatives and colleagues who regularly pack their bags for some exotic locations somewhere in the world.

The question is are you a Traveler or a Tourist? What’s the distinction and what separates the two from each other? Is one better than the other?

IMHO, there’s quite a distinction and probably it will help everyone of us if we try to remember that just because we’re spending money in a certain place does not necessarily translate to us  having the right to behave as if we own the place.

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You’re a Traveler when:

• You take time to explore a new place and stay for a period of time to really get to know the area. 

• You take time to experience the place you’re visiting by trying their cuisine, mingling and interacting with locals to learn more about their culture, taking public transportation or taking tours hosted by locals not by an organized company.

• You develop empathy and try to establish a deeper connection with the area. Visiting local museums, exploring the markets where locals shop, exploring the place on foot and not being afraid to get lost. There’s always a few pleasant surprises waiting fo you.

• You try to blend in with the environment and is sensitive to local customs and traditions.

• You’re spontaneous and not try to be an uber-planner. We all have the tendency to hit the usual checklist of places to visit or things to do in a certain area. However, the best experiences are those unplanned, random events that make a trip memorable.

And what about being a tourist? Well, you’re also technically traveling but you’re not actually experiencing the place you’re in because you’re:

• Always in a hurry and just want to hit your list of things to do or visit in the area without really experiencing it.
• Single-minded and focused on one objective – to take as many photos of yourself or record the moment and post to your social media accounts to get affirmation and not even taking time to admire your surroundings or pay attention to local customs and traditions. Even worst, traditions be damned. You just want to get the perfect shot!
• Part of an organized tour visiting one place after the other and not staying long enough to explore the area or have the opportunity to interact with locals.
• Totally insensitive to local customs and traditions.

We’ve heard horror stories lately of cities in Japan, for example, overcrowded with tourists in big buses descending on palaces and gardens totally unaware of Japanese customs and traditions. Worst yet, some gardens are being disturbed and trampled on to get the perfect photo. In turn, the poor Japanese people are now highly stressed out and unhappy. If you don’t want to feel unwelcome, take time to appreciate the people working around you to make your visit enjoyable!

Same is true with cities like Venice. Now locals are asking their government to regulate the number of visitors in this historic city because their infrastructure simply cannot cope with too many visitors.

I understand that most of us do not have the luxury of time to be a full-pledged Traveler but if we can at least be AWARE Tourists then that’s progress!

Happy Travels!